Stainless thru hull (AC)

boatman37

Well-Known Member
Jun 6, 2015
4,210
pittsburgh
Boat Info
2006 Crownline 250CR. 5.7 Merc BIII
Previous: 1986 Sea Ray 250 Sundancer. 260 Merc Alpha 1 Gen 1
Engines
5.7 Merc BIII
So my boat has all stainless thru hulls except the AC. I found out the AC was installed later and they cheaped out on a plastic thru hull fitting. It wasn't very pretty and the surveyor pointed it out as needing replaced so today I removed the old one. The hose size is 5/8" and the hole size in the side of the boat is about 1.1" so assuming a 1" fitting where the threads are. I'm looking for the full stainless, not the plastic with a stainless cover. I found a few but the hole size is about 1 1/8" but that is really close to what mine measures so assuming that's it?

Also, when I was removing the hose the fitting nipple broke off inside the hose. Haven't tried to get it out but are they special hoses? Mine is white and says 5'8" AC on it but will any hose work? Just in case I can't get the broken piece out. Not sure if there is enough there for me to cut the end off or not.
 
Ordered an Attwood 66546 standard length thru hull from Amazon for about $20. Not sure if I will need a new hose or not. Might have enough there to cut the end off. Will have to wait and see once the new thru hull is installed.

Also ordered a new transom shower head cause mine wasn't working right. It would pour water out as soon as you turned the water on and the aerator was missing from it. Also ordered Marine 31 to try to remove the spots on my white seats. Ordered a new Rule shower sump last week. After replacing all of this I should only need to clean, polish and wax and clean out my fresh water tank to get the gelled up pink out of it that keeps plugging my filter...lol. Oh, also have to pull props and grease the shaft and clean my SS props. Figuring CLR should clean them pretty good?
 
2808670-R1-015-6.jpg
So my boat has all stainless thru hulls except the AC. I found out the AC was installed later and they cheaped out on a plastic thru hull fitting. It wasn't very pretty and the surveyor pointed it out as needing replaced so today I removed the old one. The hose size is 5/8" and the hole size in the side of the boat is about 1.1" so assuming a 1" fitting where the threads are. I'm looking for the full stainless, not the plastic with a stainless cover. I found a few but the hole size is about 1 1/8" but that is really close to what mine measures so assuming that's it?

Also, when I was removing the hose the fitting nipple broke off inside the hose. Haven't tried to get it out but are they special hoses? Mine is white and says 5'8" AC on it but will any hose work? Just in case I can't get the broken piece out. Not sure if there is enough there for me to cut the end off or not.
Getting the fitting off is easy but requires a little patience and care. Buy a small 6" hack saw blade with a handle for cutting metal. Gently cut the plastic fitting inside the hose all of the way through without cutting into the hose. Make another cut about a quarter of an inch away the same way as the first. Use your needle nose pliers to pull the small section of the nipple out. Once that is gone the rest can be easily removed. Put some liquid soap on the new nipple when you reinstall the hose.
 
I was thinking about that idea but the hose I.D. is 5/8". Not sure I can find a blade small enough to get in there? My plan is to remove the hose completely so its easier to work on it. It's only about 3' long and not easy to get to where it is. Mine is under the helm in the wall between the aft cabin and the head. There is a panel to remove in the aft cabin to get to it but it's a tight fit in there. Once I get the hose out of there I'll see what I can do.

Spent a few hours today cleaning the bilge and trying to clean the gel gunk out of my fresh water tank. It keeps plugging my filter. I'm guessing it is old anti-freeze that gelled up? It's an orangish-brown color with no smell. About the consistency of toothpaste but just a little thinner.
 
2808670-R1-015-6.jpg
I was thinking about that idea but the hose I.D. is 5/8". Not sure I can find a blade small enough to get in there? My plan is to remove the hose completely so its easier to work on it. It's only about 3' long and not easy to get to where it is. Mine is under the helm in the wall between the aft cabin and the head. There is a panel to remove in the aft cabin to get to it but it's a tight fit in there. Once I get the hose out of there I'll see what I can do.

Spent a few hours today cleaning the bilge and trying to clean the gel gunk out of my fresh water tank. It keeps plugging my filter. I'm guessing it is old anti-freeze that gelled up? It's an orangish-brown color with no smell. About the consistency of toothpaste but just a little thinner.
How about putting a fine finishing nail in a vice grips and heating it with a propane torch until it is red hot. Then insert it in the nipple in a few spots around the internal wall of the nipple. Do this a few times and then extract the nipple in pieces with your needle nose pliers?
 
Hit the broken off piece of plastic with a heat gun and pull the (now) softened piece right out.
 
Heat gun sounds plausible. Might try that tomorrow
 
If the Marine 31 doesn't work for you, try Starbrite Mildew stain remover. Works great for cleaning stained seats. Get from Amazon / Walmart. West Marine wants a right arm for it. Make sure to rinse well with plain water. I use a spray bottle to rinse for anything that doesn't come out of the boat easily. Give them a good 2 or 3 good rinses and wipe downs with clean towel. Then 2 coats of 303 and look like new again.
 
If the Marine 31 doesn't work for you, try Starbrite Mildew stain remover. Works great for cleaning stained seats. Get from Amazon / Walmart. West Marine wants a right arm for it. Make sure to rinse well with plain water. I use a spray bottle to rinse for anything that doesn't come out of the boat easily. Give them a good 2 or 3 good rinses and wipe downs with clean towel. Then 2 coats of 303 and look like new again.

+1 for the Starbrite!!!!

This is the same process I use and it works well!
Bennettt
 
Boatman - if you are putting metal thru-hull fittings in then make sure they are connected to the boat's bonding system....
 
Yes, the AC outlet. None of my stainless outlets are bonded as far as I can tell.

Got the new shower sump today so might try to get that installed. Been working on the fresh water tank today. There is about 1" in the bottom and I think it is all that brownish-orange sludge. Tried getting a hose down in the fill cap but can't get it all the way down. Plan was to hook the shop vac to it and suck it out. So instead I got the inlet hose and vent hose off and unbolted the hold downs. Figured I'd try to get the tank out but that ain't happenin...lol. Would need to remove a bunch of stuff from the front of the motor. But at least I got it turned sideways to try to get the hose into the tank from there to suck it out.

So plan today is to finish that up and get both batteries installed. If I have enough time I will install the new shower sump. Hopefully after today my list is much smaller
 
From what I know, if raw water passes across and contacts with the metals then it should be bonded. No different than the deck railings or rub rails.
 
Boatman - if you are putting metal thru-hull fittings in then make sure they are connected to the boat's bonding system....
Mine were all SS from the factory but the AC was installed aftermarket and they cheaped out on the plastic one for that so I'm changing it to match
 
The thru-hull would need to be bonded if was below the waterline - but in this case, it is above the waterline so no bonding is needed. A fuel fill, for example, even though it's above the water line would need to be bonded - but that's a different situation given the fact that gas fumes and sparks don't mix very well.
 

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